Diversify Your Income – Part 4: Transitioning from 1:1 to 1:Many with Lauren Kay

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May 27

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Episode 851: Show Notes

Welcome to the fourth and final installment of our series on diversifying your income! If you missed parts one, two, or three, be sure to go back and check those out. In part one, we covered what you need to know before diversifying your income streams. Part two was all about leveraging where you’re at to get where you want to go and part three featured an in-depth discussion about adding a digital product or course to your offer lineup.

For our final episode, we are joined by author-turned-publishing coach, Lauren Kay to talk about how she grew her business rapidly and transitioned from one-to-one offers to one-to-many. A key thing that has helped Lauren grow her business so quickly is her exceptional marketing talent. However, it’s her ability to listen to the needs of her audience and provide them with the solution they’ve been searching for that has really set her apart. Tune in today to discover the benefits of transitioning from one-to-one to one-to-many, and how you can set this process in motion.

To support your journey, I’ve built a one-day challenge to take you from idea concept to launch in just one day, so that you can confidently create your next (or first!) digital product. You can learn more and sign up for free right here!

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From Author to Educator

In many ways, Lauren has a classic educator story. After finding herself in the startup world for several years and getting burnt out, she decided to fulfill her lifelong dream of writing a young adult novel. She sat down to write it in 2017, got an agent in 2020; and managed to sign a six-figure book deal with Harper Collins in 2021. However, thanks to the slow pace of publishing, it wasn’t until two years later that her book came out.

As a new, relatively unknown author, Lauren was willing to try anything to get her name out there. So, on her publisher’s advice, she got onto TikTok and started making videos. At first, she didn’t get much traction, but once she started doing what came naturally to her and teaching others, her videos took off in a big way! By sharing what she’d learned, from writing a book to finding her agent to getting published, she gained 10,000 followers in just two months, which quickly doubled and then tripled in size, with similar growth taking place on Instagram.

This development was particularly exciting for Lauren, not just because she was finding readers for her book but because she was growing a totally new business—something she had been too scared to do after her previous startup had failed almost a decade ago!

The Transition from One-to-One to One-to-Many

The natural next step when you’re building an audience is to monetize that audience. For Lauren, that meant taking her knowledge and turning it into a tangible tool that people could use. She dedicated herself to learning the ins and outs of monetization and spent three months creating an online course on How to Land an Agent. While the course launch was successful, she quickly realized that a few launches a year wouldn’t be enough.

Lauren then focused on understanding what her audience truly wanted. Thanks to her experience with past business ventures, she knew it wasn't about what she thought people needed or what she wanted for herself. It was about listening to her audience. She conducted dozens of calls with followers, analyzed comments and emails, and identified that the top demand was for one-on-one mentorship and editing. People didn’t necessarily need her directly. They wanted to be connected with the right, trustworthy person.

This insight led to the launch of her editing agency! While this still requires one-to-one work, Lauren no longer does it all herself. She brought on a team of freelance editors, each of whom had considerable industry experience and specialized in different genres. By using a combination of the one-to-one and one-to-many models, Lauren has been able to expand her business, increase her earnings, and help her audience reach their goals!

What Lauren Has Learned About Social Media

Lauren’s business and social media presence has grown remarkably fast, and she credits a lot of that to the lessons she learned in her previous startups. But social media is still pretty new to her and her approach to content has undergone some important shifts since she started. Looking back, she wasted a lot of time obsessing over her videos, from the lighting to how she scripted and edited them. Nowadays, she simply pulls out her phone and records for two minutes. It took her a while to find her confidence, but since she discovered her voice, the process has been streamlined dramatically!

Similarly, when Lauren initially got into social media, it posed a pretty big mental health challenge. We all know our devices are designed to be addictive for viewers, but as a creator, it can also have a huge impact on your psyche. Lauren found that becoming a creator on social media made it difficult for her to sleep. She would obsess over every single comment and had a lot of fear over what people were saying about her. Luckily, Lauren has found ways to manage and support her mental health alongside her social media use. She encourages people to monitor their mental health and find a community. Once she started connecting with fellow small business owners it became a lot easier.

How You Can Make This Your Full-Time Career

TikTok and social media can feel incredibly intimidating. But Lauren has a powerful message to share. She believes that many more people can make this their full-time income, they just don’t think that they can. Even if you believe that TikTok or Instagram is not for you, you should give it a shot, because it’s such an incredible marketing tool! There’s so much to gain from using it, and for many of us, the key is simply tapping into your authentic self.

One of the best ways to start your business is to reduce friction and pressure by giving yourself an adequate financial runway to establish and grow your business. For Lauren, it took about eight to nine months to grow her audience and build her business. It might look different for you, but giving yourself a financial runway might just give you the peace of mind you need to get started!

Quote This

“Initially, social media was a big mental health challenge. These devices are designed to get you addicted as a viewer.”

—Lauren Kay

Highlights

From Author to Educator [0:11:37]
The Transition from One-to-One to One-to-Many [0:16:55]
What Lauren Has Learned About Social Media [0:26:05]
How You Can Make This Your Full-Time Career [0:39:42]

OUR GUEST:

Lauren Kay

Website | Instagram | Tiktok | YouTube

Lauren Kay is a Young Adult author, educator, and creator. Her debut Young Adult novel WE SHIP IT was published with HarperCollins in June 2023. Now, Lauren is dedicated to ending gatekeeping in publishing and helping aspiring writers achieve their publishing dreams. She provides writers with transparent and empathetic advice and support through weekly videos, free resources, curated communities, and 1-on-1 editing and coaching services.

OUR HOST:

Abagail Pumphrey

Abagail on Instagram

Boss Project on Instagram | Facebook

Abagail Pumphrey, the Co-Founder & CEO of Boss Project, has been a driving force in the creative entrepreneur industry since 2015. With a passion for empowering service-based business owners around the globe, she became internet-famous after the launch of the transformative training, "Trello for Business." This innovative system revitalized the operations of over 10,000 business owners, making a significant impact on the online business landscape.

Under Abagail's leadership, Boss Project has been featured in prestigious publications such as Forbes, Marie Claire, INC, and HuffPost. Her twice-weekly podcast, The Strategy Hour, is a staple in the business community, continuously topping Business and Management Charts on Apple with millions of listeners from around the world.

Abagail's superpower lies in her ability to break down complex concepts into easy-to-implement, duplicatable systems. As an expert in online sales and a data-driven strategist, she has turned a layoff into a 7-figure work-from-home business. Abagail's mission to help more female founders become financially free, without letting their businesses take over their lives, continues to inspire and guide entrepreneurs on their path to success.